Miranda is 6 months old!

I can't believe it - our little baby girl is 6 months old! Happy half-birthday day, Miranda Ann! And what a big girl she is, growing like a weed and learning something new everyday. About 15 minutes ago she rolled onto her belly, then rolled onto her back, they once more onto her belly; very effectively rolling herself right into grasping distance of Jack, the object of her desire. Watch out world - she's mobile!

We went for Miranda's 6 month check-up on Thursday. Everything looks good, right on track! She weighs 15 lbs 13 oz; 27 inches long, and a good head size. Her weight is right at the 50% for her age, but her length is at the 85% - so she's a tall girl. She had a couple immunization shots at this appointment. That's usually a cry-fest, but she did so well this time! She gasped and turned red right when they poked her, then screeched and started to cry. But just then the Dr. peeked into the room and joked with the nurses to 'stop hurting the babies around here' to which we three chuckled, and that made Miranda laugh! So she did this crazy laugh while crying mixture, and then was fine. All told she was upset for about 20 seconds.

I'm constantly amazed at all the new things she can do. She sits pretty well now, but topples over before long. Her legs are getting really strong; she stands when we're holding her and kicks everything. Loves to kick and splash in the tub! She's so interactive and fun now - laughing and playing all the time. 2 weeks ago she'd have a giggle fit when we tickled her belly or kissed her neck. Now she'll laugh just at funny faces or voices; so we're telling lots of hilarious jokes :-). I love to cuddle this kid-o; we lay on the floor or in the bed and talk, cooing and giggling and just loving on each other! I hope to always remember these precious moments with my daughter; they swell up my heart with joy. She's seriously delightful!

List of tid-bits about Miranda: her eyes are still blue, she's loved every new baby food we've introduced, she hums while she nurses, she wakes up happy and talking, she loves to throw her head back and stretch out her neck, she watches Jack everywhere he goes and likes to pull his hair, she only poops once every 2 days, she doesn't have any teeth yet, she likes to bang on tables and anything with her hands, she sucks her toes whenever possible, she's growing hair but is mostly still a baldy, she loves to grab the remote-cell phone-cup-food away from mommy and daddy. I'd like to go on and on describing every wonderful little thing she does; but I may bore you all. In short - she's an awesome baby.

In other news:
- Our family members in North Dakota are all ok (right now at least); Fargo has a lot of waiting and watching this week yet.
- Pastor Brad at my church is a couple weeks into chemo and radiation treatment. He's feeling ok right now, but expected to get sick pretty soon. The prognosis on his cancer is not encouraging. The church has hired an interim, who will start after Easter.
- Dakota Wesleyan is undergoing a lot of change in personnel; which has been sad and tough on many. Brandon's job is ok, but he's losing some great co-workers and his department is restructuring a lot. I think he'll be moving offices this summer.
- B's been on the road almost every weekend leading services at various churches along with the Peru mission team. They're working hard to raise money for the trip. The team is really good and Brandon enjoys working with them; it will be a great mission trip this May.
- My brother and sister-in-law are expecting their baby in about 6 weeks! I'm so excited about this baby! We're going out to Boston in June to meet the little bundle of joy.

I'll work on some new pictures for the albums this afternoon - so check them out.

Welcome March

Well, my Famine weekend is over and it went so well! I really enjoyed the evening and afternoon with my students. We had a group of college kids from Augustana come help with games and worship, and they were great. My young students did so well; didn't complain about the hunger, played all the games with enthusiasm, listened during the Bible lessons - they were just really good. They'll do a presentation in church next week to show the pictures and tell the stories. After that we're done fundraising; right now they have raised about $1300. I'm feeling so much more relaxed now that the Famine is over and went well - it's a lot of work.

Brandon went on a mini-mission trip to Minneapolis these last few days. They were working at a camp site, stocking a food pantry and (my fav) helping old ladies install the new cable boxes. Sounds like a good time! He's got a couple days off with the rest of spring break; so the whole family will finally be able to relax a little.

I posted some new pictures as Miranda has now entered her 5th month. Such a big girl! I can finally say looking back at her new-born pictures she seems like an entirely different baby, so tiny and squishy-faced. She really is growing up fast; don't they all! She recently tasted some carrots along with her rice cereal. She likes both foods quite well; opens her mouth real wide and leans in toward me to try to find the spoon the moment the last bite was swallowed. It's pretty cute - like everything she does these days. She's also become VERY interested in Jack the dog. She watches him everywhere he goes and reaches out to grab him whenever he walks by her. She loves it if we sit and pet him, he doesn't love it as much, because she grabs his fur and tugs!